Introduction to

Information and
Communication
Technologies
Lesson 4. What are the software
components of computers?

UNESCO ICTLIP Module 1. Lesso

n 4.

Rationale

A computer system is generally

composed of hardware and software.
Hardware make up the physical
components. Software make up the
set of instructions for the computer.
Without software, the computer will not
be able to perform the tasks that you
would like it to do.
UNESCO ICTLIP Module 1. Lesso
n 4.

Scope

What is software?
What are the two kinds of software?
What is programming?
What are viruses and how do you
deal with them?
How do computers respond to
different character sets?
What are some general trends in
software development?
UNESCO ICTLIP Modu

Learning
outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
Define the function of software in a computer
system
Distinguish between an operating system and
an application system
List different types of operating systems and
application software
Define what are programming languages
Identify and avoid computer viruses
Compare different character sets
Be aware of general trends in software
development
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What are the types of

software?

There are two sets of instructions that a

computer must follow:
General instructions: Systems software
or operating system such as DOS,
Windows Unix, and Mac OS
Specific instructions: Application
software such as those used for word
processing, spreadsheets, or library
management
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Operating system

An organized collection of system programs

which serve as the interface between the user
or application and the computer.
It manages the hardware resources:
CPU management to facilitate sharing
execution time of processes
Memory management to allocate memory
resources dynamically
I/O management to handle reading and
writing devices
UNESCO ICTLIP Modu

Disk Operating Systems

(DOS)
Disk
Operating System (DOS) is a generic
term describing any operating system that
is loaded from disk devices when the
system is started or rebooted.
It is not a user friendly OS since users
need to memorize commands and issue it
by typing line by line. This known as
command line interface. Very few end
users use DOS nowadays.
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Microsoft Windows

A graphical user interface (GUI) originally

running on DOS (Windows 3.x) that
allows multitasking or the ability to run
several programs at the same time.
Windows 95 / Windows NT that no longer
runs on DOS
About 75% of the worlds PCs use the
Windows operating system. The present
versions in use are Windows 98,
Windows Me and Windows 2000.
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Other operating
systems

IBM OS/2
Macintosh OS
SCO Unix
Linux
Other Proprietary OS

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Applications
software
A set of instructions designed to
perform a specific task such as word
processing, accounting, cataloguing,
library management, animation, etc.

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Types of applications
software
The nature of the software
depends on the application
General purpose office software
Business management software
Special discipline software
Other applications
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General purpose office

software

Word processing: Example, MS Word

Spreadsheets: Example, Excel
Database management systems:
Example, MS Access, Oracle
Presentation/Graphics: Example,
Power Point, Corel

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What is a software
suite?
A set of software with word
processing, spreadsheet, database
management and presentation
software like MS Office is called a
software suite.

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What are special purpose

software?

Desktop publishing software:

Example, Microsoft Publisher
Imaging and drawing: Example,
Corel Draw, Photo Shop
File management: Example:
CDS/ISIS, INMAGIC
Library management software:
Example: Athena, GLAS, Innopac,
Library Solutions
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Library Software

Single function: Performs only one library

operation such as cataloging and OPAC
Integrated:Can perform all or many
operations using data from a single
database

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What is a computer
virus?
Generally
a computer virus is defined as a

program or a code that gains access without the

users knowledge and/or perform actions not
intended by the user, often damaging data and
sometimes the whole system in the process.
Viruses are activated once unknowing users
run, open, view or copy the file containing it.
The action that will trigger the virus to deliver its
payload depends on the type of virus that
infected the file.
Some security experts define viruses separately
from worms, and Trojan horses.
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Characteristics of a
* characteristics:
Virus
common
virus
1.

2.

3.

A virus is a self-replicating program whose main

purpose is to propagate itself to as many places
as possible.
A virus propagates itself by modifying another
program to include itself.
A virus can only propagate itself by an act of a
user of the system in which it exists.
(opening/viewing files unknowing that it is
infected and/or copying/transferring files from one
system to another through diskettes, file transfer,
e-mail, Internet and other means)
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What is a worm?

Worm is defined as a program propagating itself in

a network of computers exploiting bugs and
vulnerabilities of operating systems and application
software or through guessing / breaking / stealing
passwords to gain access to other machines in the
network.
Worms slow or shut down computer systems and
networks due to its continuous and uncontrolled
replication that consumes system resources which
are needed to run legitimate tasks and
operations.
The worms capability to replicate itself without any
action from the users differentiates it from a virus
that needs users action in order to replicate.
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What is a Trojan horse?

A Trojan horse masquerades as a useful or

entertaining program but contains hidden
functions that while running may destroy files
or create a back door that will allow an
intruder to access the system. The intruder
can exploit the privileges of the user e.g. view,
copy, or delete files, steal passwords,
reconfigure the system or use it to attack
another system.
Trojan horses unlike viruses do not spread by
itself but can be as destructive.
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How do you protect

yourself from viruses,
worms
and
Trojan
Do not run any
program
or open anyhorses?
file from
untrusted sources
Always scan floppy diskettes and even CD-ROMs
before using.
Install a virus shield to automatically check
diskettes and CDs
Always get an updated version of a virus scan and
cleaner.
Always check you hard drive for possible infection,
if you are connected to the Internet
Use diskettes only after they have been cleaned
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What are other ways of

ensuring security of the
system and data?

Regularly back-up your system and your data

You may use CD-R, CD-RW, diskettes, tapes, or
another hard disk for backing up your data and
your system.
Use firewalls, encryption and other security
measures to protect data, computer systems
and networks from intrusion and attacks done
through the Internet
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How are programs

written?
Programming languages are used to write
programs. Some of these are:
Low level languages--Assembler
High level languages
Cobol
Fortran
C++
Programming languages for the Internet
Perl
Java
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What are the other

requirements for writing a
program?

Systems analysis and design

Systems development--Program logic
Software development
Compiling
Testing and debugging
Implementing
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What are some

problems in
writing/using
software?
Programming languages are usually in

English. Applications usually use the

English language and the Roman alphabet.
Problems arise when the user is nonEnglish and/or is using non-Roman script.
Computers use character sets stored in
binary codes
Different scripts use different character sets.
Computers must know which writing
system/character set they are dealing with.
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What are some

problems caused by
different characters
sets?inputting data

outputting data
finding data
displaying information

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What is a possible solution

in dealing with different
character sets?

Use of Unicode--a huge character set to

include all the worlds writing systems
Development of different character sets
for different languages such as the
ones developed by the Japanese and
the Chinese.

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What are some future

trends in software
development?
More user friendly
Bigger in size because of more sophistication
More customized
More Web enabled
More open
More sophisticated programming languages
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